Sophie, nanny in Hucclecote GL3

Hi, my name is Sophie and I live in Hucclecote. I have had 7 years of experience working with mixed ability children aged 0-19 years old, including individuals with complex additional needs. During this time, I have developed a deep understanding of the importance of working closely with parents to ensure that the care provided for their child is to the highest possible standard, and have practiced this regularly.

I love baking, arts and crafts, swimming, outdoor activities, reading stories and messy play! I believe that it is really important to provide children with opportunities to explore many types of play, to allow them to grow and develop in a way that suits their needs and learning style. I focus on planning fun activities that support children holistically, however I also think it is very important to allow the children to lead play activities in a way that they are comfortable.

I am full of energy and eager to use my skill set to give your children the best opportunities to meet their maximum potential. Others may describe me as reliable, trustworthy and nurturing. I am willing to go the extra mile to ensure that I create a positive environment so that your children are both happy and safe.

When I was 13, I began volunteering for a play scheme summer club for children with additional needs aged 3-18 years. I fell in love with working with children and continued to volunteer in my spare time for 2 years before being offered a paid position on the disabled children’s team. I had many responsibilities whilst I had this role including, personal care, feeding, planning activities, and 1-1 support throughout play activities and routines.

I hold a level 3 certificate in Children’s Play, Learning and Development. Throughout my time at college I participated in over 800 hours work experience in a variety of settings, working with children aged 0-8 years old. This includes pre-schools, schools and home-based care settings. I have gained and practiced many skills throughout these placements and enjoyed working with all of the different aged children. On my final placement, working as childminding assistant, I gained new born experience as well as learning how to provide high quality care for children before school age.

I have also worked as a part time nanny over the summer of 2016 for a 10 year old. My role included light cleaning and ironing, participating in outdoor activities, encouraging the child to complete homework and playing games. I very much enjoyed my role, including going on adventures and exploring, having picnics and going swimming!

Recently, I have worked in a different role, providing administrative support in a school office. Through doing this, I have experienced the day to day running of a school and have developed many transferable skills, especially when working with parents. My favourite part about this role was having some of the children come into the office just to say ‘hello’ or to ask me to accompany them on a school outing. I was given the opportunity to go on these trips and help at school clubs which allowed me to get to know many of the children. Although I have enjoyed my role, I have missed working closely with the children every day and watching their skills develops.

Whilst I worked in the school office, I also worked for a family providing occasional care on weekends and evenings. My duties included cooking meals for the children, bathing, playing with toys and games and following the child’s usual routines. When providing evening care for the children, I enjoy reading stories with the children to allow them to calm down, before beginning their bedtime routine.

Accompanying my work experience, I also have had a lot of experience with my immediate family’s children where I developed my initial love for working with children. I learnt a lot of basic skills through caring for my two nephews, from 0-6 years old, and practiced a lot of my new skills on them whilst studying my childcare qualification at college. This included carrying out observations to assess their stage of development, planning activities for them to further their current skills, then carrying out a second observation to assess the success of the activity in supporting their skills. After a lot of practice, I now feel confident in being able to accurately assess and plan activities to allow children to learn and develop to the best of their ability.